By John A. Passante and Boone Wilde
We have all read and heard the famous proclamation: “The truth will set you free!” As children, our parents reinforced the concept of always telling the truth and of course, most of us learned the consequences for telling “a lie” the hard way. 
Of course, we travel the journey called life, and search for “the truth” of who we really are. Heavy stuff at best.
The truth is the possibilities of possibilities. The truth may even reach beyond us, but it is a worthy pursuit! We attempt to navigate and build our values, beliefs and identity around the truth.
“Every truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.” – Arthur Schopenhauer
Growing up, one of the values we were taught was that we had to tell the truth. As children, we all needed to learn and understand the concept of morality. As we mature, the truth becomes more nuanced.
At times, we rationalize that it may be OK to tell a “white lie” and shade the truth. However, shades of gray can result in miscommunications, mistrust and lost relationships.
As human beings, in life, we seek approval and acceptance from others. Especially, from the people who have influence over us (our leaders, bosses, etc.). Thus, when we miss a deadline, we manipulate the truth to disguise our mistake. I have attended board meetings when the sales missed the target and blamed the weather!
In business life, we witness messengers getting shot every day. To gain approval from “the man,” employees avoid pointing out a wrong decision or policy, and attend management meetings just nodding their heads supporting a poor thought or strategy. When employees withhold their true thoughts, ideas and feelings, it deprives the organization of the opportunity to evaluate input and to challenge the direction of the company. In addition, the lack of positive disagreement can be a gross disservice to the company.
The question to wrap your mind around is: Can you and your organization handle the truth? Do you recall that great scene in the film "A Few Good Men"?
The quest for the truth involves finding ways for a company to be genuine and congruent with your products, services and promises.
“There is no God higher than truth.” – Mahatma Gandhi
As consumers, we have all experienced a situation where a company did not come forward with the truth. In most cases, it threatens the company’s credibility and image. The lack of support for the truth impacts employees from coming forward with issues that could damage the organization in both the short and long term.
Truth entails, of course, but clearly, requires action.
When a leader speaks to employees, they listen for the truth and also watch to see if the leader’s words result in the actions promised.
Messengers are shot when they raise an unpopular point of view or ask a difficult question. I wonder: how much does the shooting of messengers cost companies in the United States each year?
Information regarding issues within a company (problems) should not be viewed by the leadership as a dangerous weapon; rather it should be viewed as a method to address challenges.
I suspect that most leaders seek honest communications, even if the message is not something they want to hear.
However, some leaders tend to react with negative emotions when responding to bad news and thus shoot the messenger in public. Radical honesty is addictive, – so is shooting the messenger.
The only way to unleash candid, open communication is to demonstrate to employees that truth (honesty) is about learning together.
Find someone in your company that is respected – an achiever – and ask this individual to be the truth monitor. They must be an objective listener – in effect, the guardian angel. They attend meetings and offer objective feedback. They listen and help the company learn to handle the truth.
Of course, every level of employee wants to know: If I tell the truth, will it jeopardize my career? How would you respond to this question?
Look at yourself in the mirror when you ponder this question!
Take the time to face the truth and how you can nurture an organization of truth tellers. Show support for the devil’s advocate (angel advocate?). All ideas can indeed be improved through honest debate, critical review and a truthful give and take.
Share the truth with your associates. It will lighten your stress level and energize your organization.
Are there any instances when stating the truth may be inappropriate? Also are there ways one can deliver the truth that are more constructive than others?
About Boone Wilde:
Boone is a Junior at the Waldorf School in Boston, Mass. He is a budding writer and an outstanding snowboarder. Boone also happens to be John A. Passante’s awesome grandson!
